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new survey. hello, everyone. it's high noon here in the east and 9:00 a.m. out west. welcome to "weekends with alex witt." the manhunt is over but a big mystery remains which led police from southern california to the wilderness of idaho. the abductor, james dimaggio, is dead and hannah anderson is alive and well. joe, what do you know? anything new that you're learning? >> reporter: alex, this morning we did get some new information about how they were able to locate dimaggio and hannah anderson. teams were up in helicopters searching the wilderness for any sign of them. near a campsite near morehead lake, they spotted james

dimaggio and hannah anderson. they ended up landing and fbi apths hiked 2 1/2 hours before they were able to get to that campsite before there was a confrontation with dimaggio. all we know is that in the end an fbi agent shot and killed dimaggio. we're told a special fbi team is coming out to idaho to conduct an investigation on that shooting. they will be interviewing witnesses to try and figure out what happened. but authorities say the best news of all is that hannah anderson was found safe. she was taken by helicopter to a hospital. we're not sure exactly where she was taken but they tell us she appears to be in good condition. alex? >> joe, when you say interviewing witnesses, is that just those that witnessed the event of killing mr. dimaggio or were there other people there? do we know anything? was it a campground? what do we know? >> reporter: it was a campsite.

we don't know if anyone else was there. it's probably safe to assume that dimaggio and hannah anderson were alone. the witnesses are probably going to be the other fbi agents or authorities that were there and then we'll have to presume that they'll be talking to hannah herself to find out what happened in the final moments but also what happened during the course of the last week, since monday. >> so she's being examined in a hospital. what about her father? for people that don't know, her mother and brother died in that inferno inside that house. >> reporter: yeah, that's right. we're told that her father is flying in to the area to be reunited with hannah at some point today. we don't know exactly when that's going to happen. we know that the sheriff in san diego says that her father was elated and relieved when he found out that hannah was safe but we do have to also keep in mind, this is a very difficult time for that family. hannah lost her mother, she lost

her brother. plus, we also just don't know what she's been enduring over the course of the past week. the fbi is offering up a lot of resources, whatever it takes for the family to cope during this very difficult time. >> joe, this area was described, as i believe, the falls church river of no return wilderness. just the name itself suggests pretty enormous area. it's the largest area in the lower 48 states that doesn't have any roads working through it. when you think about how quickly this went down, are people saying they are so lucky this didn't get dragged out? >> reporter: yeah. it really is amazing. in fact, at the news conference yesterday in cascade when they announce ow announce officially that this came to an end, dozens came to watch the news conference. they were so relieved that this came to an end. much credit is given to the horseback rider who was in the wilderness on monday, thought he spotted dimaggio and hannah.

that led them to dimaggio's car and a day later that led them to dimaggio himself. joe, thank you very much. well, again, hannah is safe and her family is grieving at the same time. her mother christina, brother ethan, only 8 years old, they were killed in san diego last weekend. sarah and ralph brit spoke with nbc this morning. >> she was a strong person and loved her children dearly and very protective of them. she's like our family. our family's very strong and dina was an excellent mother and would do anything for her children and apparently she just trusted jim and we all trusted jim. >> well, the grandparents put together some personal items for

hannah to be in the hospital to help her feel more comfortable and at home. they are planning a big celebration for the 16-year-old when she returns home. we hope to learn more from an idaho spokesperson. devastating flash floods in colorado washing away cars. this video is just incredible. sweeping a house off its foundation as well in the manitou springs. one person was killed and another is missing. this is the worst disaster in decades. more rain is expected there, also, like they need that. hello, dylan. >> hi, alex. there was a huge wildfire not long ago. that parched ground can't absorb the moisture. you get the mudslides and severe flooding. today they are getting a break from it at least. it does move back in tomorrow, though. we are looking at our best chance of any severe weather, up

through parts of nebraska and iowa. biggest wind gusts and isolated large hail. it's more wind gusts and hail possibility as we go into this afternoon. northeastern arkansas, still seeing some rain but the heaviest of the rain is going to hold off until about tuesday in that area. so it's much needed relief but it's certainly not going to last long enough. that stalled front sitting right through the plain states and into parts of the midwest is going to produce another one to three inches of rain within the next 48 hours. so flooding again could be an issue, especially across parts of kansas into missouri and into northern arkansas. today, though, things will be very quiet in that area. scattered showers and storms. we'll keep an eye on the northern plains for some of those severe storms to develop later this afternoon. in the northeast, lower humidity with temperatures in the 70s and 80s. that will continue until tomorrow. scattered showers and storms across the southeast and, again, possible back in the kansas city

area where temperatures should be in the mid-80s. we're still above average in texas. >> what you're bringing us here in new york, thank you very much. >> it's great. it's back to business today for the u.s. state department. all but one of the 19 embassies and consulates closed last weekend have reopened. still closed is the embassy in yemen and lahore, pakistan, remains closed due to a threat. is this an essentially all clear? how are you interpreting it? >> well, to some extent u.s. officials feel with confidence that they can allow some of the embassies or all of the embassies that have closed as a result of that to reopen. that's the case here in cairo. there's no doubt that security will remain high in these fa till si sill teas. they had actually reduced their

staff because of the current unrest here in egypt. so really they are opened for business, as we understand it. things are back to normal. they are still operating at the staffing levels that actually preceded that al quiaeda threat. some staff had already left. there's no doubt they are going to remain a vigilant watch on many of these embassies in wake of the al qaeda threat that emerged last week in yemen. >> speaking of yemen, that embassy is still closed. yemenich yemeni officials claiming that a drone killed two people. what are you hearing on that? >> reporter: well, there's no secret that the u.s. has stepped up drone strikes in the past several days. by some estimates, as many as ten have taken place since july

27th. that's a very alarming and accelerated rate. some yemeni are speaking out about that calling it counterterrorism allegations. they have not identified any of the individuals it's allegedly targeting and that makes it much more difficult. as many as 38 suspected militants have been killed in the series of strikes, by some accounts, and it's difficult to get information about it. the yemeni government do not reveal that. another american drone strike took place in the southern part of the country. alex? >> thank you, ammon. meanwhile, the chairman of the house of homeland security says a threat exists overseas and also here at home. >> the threat briefings i get, it's real, it exists. there's a large plot brewing in the middle east right now which is why they have closed these embassies and it could also

directly impact the homeland. and how irresponsible would that be for us to do nothing? >> meanwhile, the decision to close the 19 u.s. embassies across the middle east and northern africa was not an overreaction. >> there was strong intelligence information and any time an american is put at risk in the world or our homeland, we have to deal with it. we have to be cautious. it wasn't just one incident. there's cooperation that is occurring and strong intelligence. kristen welker is in martha vineyards where president obama is vacationing. what are lawmakers saying to you about this latest threat? >> reporter: alex, good day to you. lawmakers seem to be on the same page. closing the 19 embassies was the right move because it pointed to the fact that al qaeda was

planning either one large explosion or a series of explosions. here's a little bit more on that from congressman peter king. take a listen. >> the intelligence that i saw here was at least as powerful as anything i've seen since 9/11, probably the closest would be the liquid explosive plot out of london in 2006. but this was very credible. it was corroborated and spoke of a massive attack and to me was the right thing to do. >> now, alex, some republicans did use the closure of those 19 embassies to attack president obama's foreign policy center. john mccain making a point that the peninsula has gotten much stronger in recent years and also argue that it's an indication that president obama hasn't been strong enough in terms of combatting that growing presence and threat from al qaeda. of course, the president has countered those types of arguments by saying that he got bin laden and, of course, he has

acknowledged that al qaeda is quite strong in yemen and the arabian peninsula. we have seen that concern play out due to the increase of drone attacks in yemen. of course, there have been a series of attacks in recent days so the white house doesn't dispute the fact that al qaeda is quite strong in that region. i've been talking to people who have been briefed on the intelligence, alex, and one of their chief concerns is the fact that al qaeda in the arabian peninsula have been working with the technology to use explosive devices. that is one of the things that they are looking at. but certainly people on both sides of the aisle watching closely monitor this threat. >> the surgically implanted devices, it would be really hard to detect them. you make a great point, kristen welker, thank you. >> absolutely. members of congress may have created a monster waiting for them at their town halls. [ male announcer ] when your favorite food starts a fight,

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more of the same? well, today one key republican is saying congress should continue to fight obama care even after 40 previous attempts to repeal the law have failed. >> there is no more important regulatory reform that we can do to repeal every single word of obama care. [ applause ] >> and that reaction right there shows how we win this fight. >> joining me now, congress reporter for role call, wanna, i'm going to begin with you. there they go again. this refrain from the gop on obama care, is there a concern within the white house that it actually could have an effect? >> i think there's certainly a concern but we did hear

president obama at the news conference before heading on vacation saying that he doesn't believe things will go so far as a government showdown despite saying that they are going to go to that point as defunding the health care law. there is certainly concern but at least publicly the white house seems to think that's not a likely prospect. >> meredith, a big number in the house right now stands at 40, as in the numbers of times that the gop has overturned obama care, wholly or in part. how many republicans in the house actually wish this would stop? >> i would imagine that there is a growing number. i mean, i think when you looked at the president's press conference this week he was the most passionate i've ever seen him in defending this law and the key point that he made, look, originally after this law passed the republican line was we'll repeal and replace it. and now that second part has sort of fallen off. i think the more votes that you have to repeal this law and the more failed votes that you have to repeal this law, because honestly the president is never

going to sign into law any sort of repeal and the nate is not going to pass it. so that would never happen and even come to his desk. i think it makes the republicans look like they actually don't have an agenda of their own and gives the president that kind of talking point to use against them and i can't see how them shutting down the government over defunding obama care will work out in their favor. >> well, in terms of talking points, you make a point because it gives talking points for senator ted cruz at these town halls, like the town hall palooza. in exchange with his constituents over obama care, let's listen. >> it has to pass the senate and signed by the president of the united states. >> will you make a stand to get back on board, give us -- >> do you think harry reid is going to pass 70%? >> it doesn't matter. we need to show the american people that we stand for -- >> so do you think, as you listen to that person in the crowd saying that we need to

stand and show the american people we stand for conservative values, is this sort of a monster of the gop lawmaker's creation? they must now continue voting on measures to repeal obama care regardless of whether they want to or not. juana? >> i think there's some truth to that. we're in this town hall season and there's an issue that is certainly resonating. so, yeah, i think there is some truth in that that they have to do these votes which have obviously very little effect but certainly generate headlines for them back in their districts. >> meredith, same question for you. weigh in on that. do you think it's a monster that the gop is creating? >> i wonder what the end game is. if you continue to have the pushes to repeal this bill, you have the town halls, hundreds of people who are passionate about to show up and address the lawmaker. i don't know if the person in this town hall is the average

american. i think that's someone who is so engaged or in tune with this issue on a particular side that they feel the need to talk out. i mean, i'm more curious in the town hall season about what happens with immigration and it's a bill that is alive and active. there are outside groups that have interest in weighing in and the house needs to do something. you have every house leader saying that you can piece something together whether it's in a piecemeal fashion or comprehensive than what the senate did. >> i'm curious what you think the likelihood is that that will get passed or anything much before 2014. this congress is quickly earning that moniker that they are the do-nothing congress. >> i think we will see how it shakes out in september. the debt limit is scheduled to be hit this fall and the government spending bill runs out. that's something that is going to have to happen. i know juana covers defense

issues. they usually get it done no matter what but there are tricky issues as talking about reforms, dealing with sexual assault in the military. so there are things that they have to do. above and beyond what they have to do, i don't know. but the closer you get to 2014, the more difficult it is to get anything done. i just don't know what the likelihood is if they take things together, that came together for them in the senate and then piece it apart because i don't see democrats, for example, voting in mass to support a rd boer security-only bill. >> all right. meredith, juana summers, thank you so much. >> thanks for having us. the march on washington and how its seeds were sewn decades earlier. right now, 7 years of music is being streamed. a quarter million tweeters are tweeting. and 900 million dollars are changing hands online.

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the summer home selling season is heading for the home stretch and while the city of detroit has plunged into bankruptcy, its housing market is on the rebound. motown measured a 7th. california is in first. the south looms large and the friendliest cities in america, austin, texas, ranking fifth, thanks to music, food, and lay backed and friendly locals. then savannah, georgia, and iowa and the friendliest city in america is charleston, south carolina, for its hospitality and charm. on the flipside is newark, new jersey, the most unfriendly city. oops. that's followed by oakland,

california, new haven, connecticut, detroit, and atlantic city. first step pizza, second step flaming battens. >> mmm. >> mmm. >> come on, who doesn't like a pizza pie? where is the best pizza in america? it's not in deep-dish hometown chicago. the top five, in reverse order, seattle, new york, boston, las vegas, and at number one, it's san diego. would you have guessed that? and those are your number ones here on "weekends with alex witt." you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. zyrtec® love the air.

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netanyahu is recovering after undergoing hernia surgery. he's expected to recuperate at home. get ready for a show in the sky. the perseid meteor shower is the most viewer friendly show of shooting stars in the northern hemisphere. experts say viewing will be best just before dawn. probably worth the wakeup. we're learning new details about how the operation to save hannah anderson ended. joining me on the phone is acting public information officer. andrea, thank you for joining me on the phone. we were watching you yesterday at the news conference. you and i spoke shortly there afterwards and then this operation happened after that. can you walk us through what went down there? >> right. our initial information yesterday and the first thing that kind of started this in motion was an airplane that we

had up in the air, the crew that was up there was able to spot a campsite or a remote camp area that appeared to have two people. as we were able to watch more closely, the fbi teams and the teams that were watching confirmed that they believed this was dimaggio and hannah there on the ground. once we had that information, the hostage rescue teams moved in. there was challenges with getting the teams close enough to the camp but they moved in as closely as possible to get hannah rescued immediately. >> how long did they have to hike? i mean, this was such a remote area. they couldn't drive anywhere close to the campsite, right? >> absolutely not. there is no vehicle traffic allowed within this protected wilderness area and the second challenge was the terrain. so it is not flat land. it's very steep, rugged terrain.

the topography alone made it impossible to land close to the campsite. also, you have to remember they did not want dimaggio to know that they were coming, of course. >> right. right. >> so they were able to land quite a ways away and actually the recovery teams, the response teams, rescue teams were able -- they hiked about two to 2 1/2 hours in to where the camp area was, surrounded that, and then moved in. >> so this campsite, where exactly was it located? what were they doing? was there a lake? was there swimming? i mean, you just wonder what they were doing? just sitting at a camp fire? >> i don't know exactly what they have done for the last few days. but they are near a lake within that wilderness area and that's where the campsite was put up, very near where the horseback riders on wednesday spotted the pair. >> so how about when they were found? these fbi agents or the rescue recovery team, what were they

doing? >> what was the -- what was dimaggio and hannah doing? >> yes, what were they doing? >> they were just there at the campsite. i don't have a lot of information. of course, some of that will come out or be part of the investigation as the fbi continues that here in case sca. what they did was watch closely when hannah and dimaggio were separate. the biggest priority was making sure that hannah was safe. as soon as they had the two separate, that's when they rescued here. >> they were separate and they got hannah to safety or do we just know she was far enough distance away that they could rush mr. dimaggio? >> any of the specifics about what happened on the ground during that rescue effort, we don't have that. it's part of the investigation that will begin today with the team coming in with the fbi. but we just know that they were able to -- they wanted to get

her out of that area and to safety and getting her the care that she needed immediately as quickly as possible and as safely as possible. >> and there's no word whether or not he resisted being arrested or being confronted, we don't know that? >> no, none of that information is available. >> how about hannah's condition right now? >> specifically, doing well. of course, emotionally it's difficult to know what kind of trauma she may have endured the last week. certainly we have victim services specialists with her. they have been with her since the moment she was rescued and they are ensuring that she gets all of the care she needs today, tomorrow, and the weeks and months ahead. >> you know, we have to remember that her mother and her brother were killed if that fair at mr. dimaggio's home south of san diego. this was a family that they didn't even have time to grieve over that out of concern for hannah, right? >> absolutely. it's certainly a bittersweet time for that family indeed and

difficult to even imagine what kind of emotional stress hannah is under because of all of that. >> well, i'm sure that you are all feeling a sigh of relief and to know that she is safe today. andrea dearden, thank you for speaking with us. >> you're welcome. in a new interview this morning, michael mccaul rejected president obama's claim that core al qaeda has been decimated. congressman mccaul says that the threat is worsening. >> the threat is real and what i call the narrative of the president saying that al qaeda is on its heels, the struggle is over, let's go back to pre- 9/11 mentality, i think it's very nervous. i get the same press briefings that the president of united states does and i'm not seeing his rhetoric meeting reality. >> joining me now is who actually helped to draft

legislation that created the department of homeland security. good morning. whose view is closer to what you're hearing, the president or congressman mccaul's? >> when we talk about threats, they are not threats. they are judgment calls. it's a credible threat right now. when the president receives information about these threats, he needs to act on them and i believe the actions that he's taken, both with the closures of the embassies and how he's chosen to reopen a number of them, this is acting on credible intelligence and he's following through on what he believes are the credible threats. >> okay. we understand that. overall, al qaeda, has it been decimated or are you more leaning toward the school of thought that because of all the splintered groups and things that have come out of al qaeda, you know, that may have been more organized previously, that makes it more dangerous? or is al qaeda becoming more organized now? >> i think what we're seeing is

we have addressed the threats that aqap and al qaeda has provided. what we're looking at is where we're getting the intelligence from and how to respond to that. what the president is doing is following those threats and following that intelligence and that is what needs to be done and those are the accurate actions. >> okay. what about what is happening today. as the state department has reopened all but one of the 19 embassies and consulates closed in yemen, what constitutes the all-clear? what kind of intelligence would tell officials that it's okay to reopen these posts? >> it's hard to know that because we don't know the intelligence that specifically led to the closure but because those responsible for making the decisions, we'll know when that threat has dissipated enough to make that all-clear decision and choigs. >> okay. i'm going to call this monday morning quarterbacking because there has been a lot of talk that the embassy closures were

an overreaction. it doesn't happen often like that. what do you think? >> i think, again, you know, this government and this president, as any president would do, takes credible threats seriously. again, these are judgment calls. and the threats and the information that was gleamed and obtained, judgment was made and who knows if those decisions actually prevented an thwarted an attack. what we do know is a week after those closures happened, we have not seen anything and the intelligence is -- was credible and the actions, i believe that were taken, were appropriate. >> absolutely. we haven't seen anything. it's all about the interpretation of what you do see. >> yes. >> all of the chatter on the jihadi side, "god is great.

america is in a condition of terror and fear from al qaeda." so given that interpretation, have terrorists succeeded in some manner? >> of course terrorists are going to say that and we can internalize it however we want to. but we have an infrastructure to obtain threats and thwart them. that's the functionality that we live in. and where i think we have succeeded, we have this infrastructure that allows us to make decisions, make educated judgments and in this case i think closing 19 embassies based on aqap intelligence was the right thing to do. >> kiersten totd, thank you. >> thanks, alex. an historic moment that may have defined the rights for civil rights years before the march on washington. his dad knows he's not. that's why dad got allstate accident forgiveness. it starts the day you sign up. [ female announcer ] with accident forgiveness from allstate,

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edward snowden says he's not saying when he will visit russia. edward snowden has been charged in federal court with violations of the espionage act. new articles gifl giving a fresh perspective of the march in washington for jobs and freedom at the height of the civil rights movement. the saturday evening post covered civil rights extensively in the '50s and '60s and has released a column called "it's our country, too" and it's about how the march actually began a full 22 years earlier with the protests that were planned but never actually happened. joining me now is jeff neilson as well as james peterson, professor of studies at lehigh university and an msnbc contributor. gentlemen, good to have you both here. thank you for joining us. >> thank you, alex. >> jeff, the retrospective

article includes the discussion with walter white. what happened there? talk about what happened all the way back to 1940 and people have to remember what time this was. this was a full year before pearl harbor, a much different time. >> that's right. at this point, when fdr was trained together, national support for what was going to be unpopular prior to pearl harbor, he was looking to get americans united and walter white saw an opportunity here and he said, if you really are serious about needing people, you better start looking at black community because we can provide value skills in the military and in manufacturing. >> uh-huh. >> okay. and they wanted to do this. they wanted to get jobs in defense and all sorts of different things. what happened when they tried to? >> well, the defense contractors would basically enforce the same discriminatory policies that were -- had been enforced for a long time. black people trained white

people. white people could be promoted and white people stayed in subservant positions. >> because of the rules in place? >> sometimes it was the union, they had a policy not to accept black members and if not you were excluded from a union site. >> so you can see how this led to a march on washington? >> that's right. they said, i will gather 20,000 black americans. we will march on washington and we are going to protest and it's going to be very visible at a time when you don't really want this kind of publicity. roosevelt said, all right, i'll make a deal. please don't march. i will make a deal and issue an executive order that ends the discriminatory differences between white and black orders if you work under a federal contract. >> professor, i'm going to ask you to reach out and give me a perspective of how significant was this threat at this time in history? what were the fallouts?

>> it was very, very significant. fdr was vulnerable in terms of the coalition that he was trying to pull together at that particular time but i think also placing this in the context of this moment when we have come to this run-up of the 50th commemoration and continuation of the march on washington to understand that there were other figures like a. phillip randolph and walter whiten gauging in these ongoing efforts to get equal justice for all. it's also interesting to look at the military at that particular moment. there are articles outstanding and it gives us a good sense of how the military has been the battlefront for issues of equal justice and equality for quite some time. in the 1940s it was still a segregated military. today we're thinking more about sexual assault and sort of the roll back of don't ask, don't tell. it's still an interesting historical corollary to think

about it. >> and what is interesting as well, professor, is that this is 1940. jump ahead almost a quarter century later to '63. talk about what happened with president kennedy doing something similar, president kennedy did to try to discourage martin luther king as head of the march. >> and this is struck tif for understanding today the relationship between progressives and president obama, which is when you look at roosevelt, you look at kennedy, and lbj as well, they had the pressure. they had to be -- there had to be a situation where political pressure could be brought to bear and they did so and there were certain exchanges and tradeoffs. there was some compromise. it wasn't what they always wanted to get out of those processes. part of that pressure is having good vision and understanding what needs to get done but also -- i wouldn't characterize

it as a threat but the possibility of mass organization of people showing up on the mall and demonstrating just through human force their willingness to contribute to these particular causes. i think it's a really important and constructive piece for this as we look at the relationships between progressives and different things we want to see happen. >> interestingly, as we look at 1953 with you, jeff, there was a time when negotiation from a position of strength because look what martin luther king did. >> the black community would rise and exert pressure. up to that point, it had been politicians and when kennedy tried to convince king not to stage the march, king said, no, i'm going to stage it anyway. kennedy issued the civil rights

policy which we forget today but made him a very hated man in the south and just one month for his assassination, the post ran an editorial saying, "they hate kennedy." if he ever came south, he may be in dane jury of his life. >> as we look ahead to the 50th anniversary of the march on washington, i know that will be a lot of msnbc's coverage a couple saturdays from now, put it all in context and what that means to you. >> it's a powerful moment. what jeff is talking about, that moment where kennedy and eventually johnson both understood that the south was essentially lost to the democratic party over the course -- over those political issues around civil rights and as we look now and to how this country is sort of separated, when you look at the south now, when you look at the republican party and the gutting of the voting rights act, when you look at the sort of battlefronts for the war against women and

different issues around voter i.d. and the criminal justice and so many issues about equality and justice in this society that some people will say, hey, we haven't made much progress. we've still made progress. we have a long way to go. so here's a moment where we can assess where we are. i hope we spend more time focused on what happens now. >> absolutely. where we are going next. thank you. the outrage over a t-shirt and the damage that messages like this one can do. hey! yummm! totally got it all! don't forget your favorites, girls. hey girls! the good ol'days when we could eat as we wanted. yes, but we are not 18 anymore. sometimes if i eat as i used to my digestive system gets out of whack. it's not easy keeping it working as it should. it's easy if you enjoy an activia everyday. mmmm... delicious! with the exclusive probiotic bifidus regularis, activia helps regulate your digestive system. put a smile back in your day! ♪ activia

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the children's place has yanked one of its t-shirts off the production line after a debate still stirring controversy. some say the store went too far in gender stereotypes. shopping, check, music check, dancing check, and math, well,

that's what had a lot of parents heated over. joining me now, mary beth, consumer senior editor. with a good day to you, pretty strong reaction to that t-shirt that the children's place facebook page put out there. what was your first reaction when you saw it? >> a little bit of disbelief. we've seen similar things in the past and there's been similar outrage. it's surprising that a large retailer hadn't learned before this not to put a t-shirt like this out there. >> how dangerous over it all do you think it is, mary beth, to glamourize the notion that little girls don't like math in today's society? >> it's dangerous based on the reaction of the consumers and the shoppers. it's not a good idea. i think they've done a good job smoothing it over but they should learn their lesson now and don't do it again. >> here's what's interesting. you compared the messages communicated to boys and girls saying the boys are surfing, playing the drums, being an

athlete and a rebel and we have the girls, "all about glitter" and "born to wear diamonds." from brand and branding and marketing today, tell me about that. >> it should be an equal message. some girls like glitter and singing and dancing, and some girls like math. they should make it more equal. they shouldn't be telling them what they shouldn't be trying to do. they should be telling them what they can do and say anything is possible for a little girl or boy. >> right. but here's something else. look, parents don't have to buy a product that they believe will negatively influence their child. >> right. >> should it have stayed on the shelves and sent a stronger message like, that didn't sell? >> it's interesting. i've seen a lot of people on facebook saying, i would buy that shirt. if you have a problem with it, don't buy it. but i think the design is what is making people angry. >> i want to read a report that the children's place put out.

"we take feedback from our customers very seriously. there are countless women in all walks of life who excel in math, including our very own ceo. we want to apologize to anyone we offended." do you think that statement says let's move away from the controversy and move forward? >> i think so. if they really believe that, they shouldn't have put the shirt out there. >> when it comes to schooling, it's all about lessons. do you think the children's place has learned a lesson on this one. >> yes. >> maybe so. mary beth, thanks so much. >> thanks. how the manhunt for a 16-year-old california girl and her alleged abductor came to an end in the idaho wilderness. we have a live report at the top of the hour. f-f-f-f-f-f-f. lac-lac-lac. he's an actor who's known for his voice.

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a grim search for two people after flash flooding in

colorado. a live report straight ahead. what happened? lingering questions on the kidnapping of the california girl. and the rift with russia. could it lead to a u.s. boycott at the olympics in sochi? and oprah winfrey and the pricey purse. welcome to "weekends with alex witt". let's get to what is happening in idaho with some good news. a mystery, though, that is still unraveling. hannah anderson has been rescued. i spoke with andrea, the acting public information officer about how the rescue went down a short time ago. >> the thing that started this in motion is an airplane that we had up in the air a. crew was able to spot a campsite.

it was a remote camp area that appeared to have two people. as we were able to watch more closely the fbi teams and the marsh marsh marshal teams believed that was dimaggio and hannah on the ground. the hostage rescue teams quickly moved in. >> well, joining me now is joe fryer who is in boise, idaho, for us. a good day to you. is hannah saying anything to you? i know we had a limited time in the last hour. has she shared any details yet? >> reporter: you know, not yet. certainly she's not speaking publicly at this point. we have to assume she's speaking with rescuers. after she was rescued in the idaho wilderness, she was taken by helicopter to a hospital to be checked out. the initial impression before she was taken to the hospital was that she appeared to be okay

but they wanted to have her checked out just in case. of course, we have to keep in mind that this has probably been a very traumatic week for her and it started a week ago with the apparent murders of her mother and her brother. the fbi is promising all the resources needed to try to help hannah and her family help with this very difficult time. alex? >> yeah, absolutely. are you hearing details about the rescue operation? do we know how many fbi personnel were going in there? what do we know? >> reporter: yeah, we don't know exactly how many. we do know that it was a team of fbi agents who are trained in this tactical missions. they could not land in that area. it was near a lake but an area completely surrounded by mountains. they actually had to land a good ways away and then the fbi agents hiked for 2 1/2 hours before they got to that campsite and that's where they confronted dimaggio and ended up shooting

and killing dimaggio. we don't know what happened during the interaction between them or what led up to the shooting. all we know is that an fbi agent did end up shooting and killing him and a special fbi team is coming out here from washington, d.c. to idaho. they will be interviewing witnesses and other agents on the scene and probably hannah herself to try to figure out what happened out there in the wilderness. >> do we know if hannah want injured, physically speaking? one can only wonder how she is doing emotionally during this ordeal. physically do we know if she's okay? >> reporter: physically the sheriff in san diego said their initial impression was that she appeared to be okay. they wanted to check her out to

see if she's okay. her father is coming into this area and they will be reunited. we don't know exactly when that will happen but it will be a important moment for this entire family. >> absolutely. joe fryer there in boise, thank you. again, hannah is safe and her family says that they are relieved but grieving at the same time. her mother and brother were killed last weekend. sarah and ralph brit, hannah's grandparents, described about hearing the rescue this morning. >> we got the phone call from brett yesterday afternoon. all he did was say, can you come over to his house. and we have some news. so we got in our car and we didn't know if it was good news or bad news and it was a long drive there. we weren't sure what to expect. when we got there, brett greeted us and he said hannah was safe and jim was dead and hugs, joy,

we were so happy. >> she'll be in the hospital for a bit and i imagine when they feel the time is right we'll be able to speak with her. >> and since she will be in the hospital, the grandparents put some personal items in her room to make her feel more at home. they are planning a celebration for the 16-year-old when she returns. >> the deadly flash flooding in colorado. heavy rains pounded parts of the state turning streets in manitou springs, sweeping away everything in their path including cars. let's go to leanne gregg where she is following this story for us. what a mess, leanne. good day. >> reporter: hi, alex. usually these streets are filled but they are going through the

debris and washing off mud from the floodwaters. you can see that the sandbags in these buildings, they were not enough to hold back the floodwaters from friday night when more than an inch of rain fell in 30 minutes and you combine that it fell on the waldorf burn area, it compounds the problem. it was like a torrential downpour and the floodwaters raged through this downtown area and at one point was more than 12 feet above the creek bed. one person was killed and several were injured. many cars were washed away. damage to buildings, as you can see, and then cleanup will take a very long time. alex? >> leanne, in terms of those still missing, what is the update for the search for them? >> reporter: they are trying to track down who maybe saw them

last. there was unconfirmed reports that maybe one of the missing women was now in a hospital. but we don't know officially if that is true. it's a very small community. people know everyone, at least local residents. so they are still just trying to track down the movements of these two people and they are not sure where they were last. >> leanne, was there any heads up that this kind of bad, terrible, torrential rains was coming their way? anything that people could have done to help themselves? >> reporter: that's a good question and people are saying that, no, there really was not any warning about how bad this really was. they are used to having floods in this area and they are used to sandbagging because there is a creek and often it does rise but it's not this bad usually and it hasn't been this bad in quite a long time and there are concerns that this is not going to go away. it's in the monsoon season right now and afternoon showers are a concern. as a matter of fact, the volunteers are told that they must be prepared to leave in

early afternoon because the town is concerned that there might be more flooding. >> okay. well, there from manitou springs in colorado, leanne, thank you. new reaction from a key republican lawmaker to the nsa surveillance program and to president obama's comments that he called to are a thorough review of the program before edward snowden leaked information about it. here is congressman mike mccaul on "meet the press." >> the president finally came out last friday trying to come up with ways to salvage the program by window dressing, you know, forming a website, for instance, an outside group and then the problem fundamentally to explain and terrorist plots and adequately respond.

>> the top democrat on the house intelligence committee is commenting on this program. what is he saying? >> reporter: well, alex, good afternoon. acknowledging the fact that the nsa program has a real perception program, that americans are skeptical about this program. they have been criticizing the president for not doing a good enough job of explaining it to the public. that is why there is so much opposition to the surveillance program. well, today, the representative said that the president took an important step on friday when he announced these steps aimed at enhancing transparency and oversight. take a look at what he had to say. >> we in politics have to deal with perception, not just reality. and we need to do better in educating our public so they are not fearful that we, the government, are violating their privacy. that's very important. and chairman feinstein and sham

bliss, we went to the white house and i applaud the president for bringing us to there, that we need this program. >> reporter: alex, i have been out and about talking to folks here on martha's vineyard. there are a lot of heated emotions and reactions to this program still. people responding to the steps that president obama said and one person telling me that they are an important first step but he wants to see the follow-up. another person saying that he is deeply skeptical saying that president obama's measures that he announced on friday don't go far enough and the nsa program is a real threat to our democracy. those heated responses are really emblematic of what we are seeing in polling, according to "the wall street journal" poll. 56% of americans are concerned that it will go too far on infringing on privacy rights and

compare that to when 65% of americans with the knockdown on terrorists. it will undoubtedly get more heated in the coming days and weeks, alex. >> i know it's vacation, but do you know anything about the president's plan while he's there in martha's vineyard? >> reporter: alex, we know that he's out there on the golf course with some of his favorite golfing buddies. and we have this sort of interesting moment of president obama expressing frustration. i guess he missed a putt but all in all it seems like he's having fun on this sort of full day of vacation. i have covered the president on vacation in the past. i can tell you that he usually take as trip to get ice cream with the girls or they will stop at the bookstore. i imagine there will be a lot of golf in the coming days. the office of the presidency travels with president obama, wherever he goes.

susan rice is here giving him regular briefings. this is a working vacation but certainly he is making time for some r & r as well. >> i bet he won't miss that putt in a couple of days. >> reporter: there you go. let's go to political editor for the grio and perry, i'll begin with you. we're at summer recess. essentially for washington, give me a big picture sense from the white house what is the president thinking moving forward? >> there are four big issues going forward and the president mentioned them on friday. the big issue is the government funding in washington. government funding is due to expire on september 30th and he offered the debt limit. that's the key issue, republicans in the white house disagree how much it should be and that's a big fight with a

potential government shutdown and that's the most immediate concern. three other issues, one, is the immigration pill, which t immigration bill, which the they passed a month ago. the third is obama care which really goes into action on october 1st. the white house very carefully monitoring that issue. they want that program to work. and the fourth issue is the president is supposed to pick a new head of the federal reserve very soon and his favorite candidate larry summers who used to work for him at the white house, of course, a lot of democrats don't like him. a big debate over who should run the federal reserve. >> emily, when all parties are backed, rested in that post vacation glow, any chance that congress can reconcile some of their biggest differences like budget, obama care, immigration sth. >> that remains to be seen. it's going to be a long month. we're all rusty on our golf swings, too. it's just getting started. you're going to find a lot of

anxiety and angst out there in some of these town halls that members of congress in particular are going to be holding back in their home districts. and i think there's a lot of activity among the activists class on a lot of these issues, particularly the ones that perry mentioned on immigration and on obama care. those are two issues where you have activists really stirring up voters over this august recess. so this is not just about golf this august. >> yeah. >> i think when congress reconvenes next month, there's still going to be very mindful of what they heard in their home districts districts and so i think they are probably not hearing, hey, moderation and compromise. that's not what they are hearing from back home. i can't think that when they return they are going to be feeling that that's what is going to be driving them. >> perry, do you think the gop is satisfied with maintaining

the status quo? >> i think a lot of republicans actually are. one thing to keep in mind here is, a lot of republicans got elected in 2010 and 2012, the rand pauls, ted cruzes. they campaigned on president obama's success. if you asked rand paul, he would say this gridlock where i'm blocking president obama is good. it's what people elected me for. a lot of town halls that emily is talking about, the republican and congress is talking about defunding obama care or don't fund the government anymore. i think there's a lot of republicans who want gridlock who are elected to block stuff. they are not necessarily concerned about bill signing with president obama. that's not what they came here for. >> emily, same question to you. do you agree? >> absolutely. i think you heard john boehner say this, in an interview where he said judge the republican parties on the number of bills that we repeal.

not the ones that we pass. if you're looking at passing bills and like perry said showing up at the bill signing is a metric of success, that is the wrong metric. they don't see passing legislation as what they were sent here to do. and that frustrates, in some ways, a leadership that might want some compromise on some issues. but they don't answer to the constituents that those tea party members answer to when they are back home. i think you're dealing with a totally different metric. someone i talked to this week said, it's not like a baseball game. some of these house republicans don't see scoring as good. >> so interesting. and can anybody question why congress right now has one of the lowest approval ratings in history? that was rhetorical. perry, emily, good to see you. >> thank you. >> thanks. should the u.s. boycott the olympics in russia? one leading legislator weighs in. for his small business. take these bags to room 12 please. [ garth ] bjorn's small business earns double miles

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senator john mccain is weighing in on the increasingly fro frosty relationship between russia and the u.s. >> clearly, mr. snowden's being granted asylum in russia is a signal of incredibly bad relations between the united states and russia and mr. putin putting it right in america's eye. >> joining me now is elliott. welcome to you. good to have you here in the studio. can you offer a perspective here on this current situation in u.s./soviet relations? is it a new low? put it in perspective. >> well, it's pretty low.

it's unfortunate but mr. putin knows what he's doing and he apparently didn't care or wanted relationships to deteriorate. i think his decision to grant snowden asylum is outrageous and he think he had to know that it would have a negative effect on our relations. the question is, how do we react? it's clear that russia for a long time now has been an adversary in many ways in the united states blocking us in the united nations when we attempt to have resolutions on syria or iran not supporting things that president obama has thought that we should do. the question, though, is how do we react? and i think that's what the president is trying to do. he's trying to be balanced. he canceled a meeting that he was to have with putin, which i think was a good thing, and we have to then see what other things we can do. >> but you've given some examples. is that why this matters? i'm curious what the strategic

impact is with a fractured relationship with russia. >> well, again, russia's an important country and they are helping us and afghanistan. they have been helpful in some ways but we have tried to be helpful to putin's sensitivities or sensibilities. i think we should be a lot less caring of what putin thinks and do what is right. for instance, russia has a dismal human rights record. the lgbt community is up in arms. they've passed legislation essentially i can maing anyone who supports gay rights can be subject to being arrested and tried. and i think we need to be a lot more local about these policies. >> okay. so you put some perspective here by giving these kinds of policies. compare that to edward snowden. is he worth all of this hoopla over him? >> well, he's -- it's only worth it because president obama had asked putin not to do this and

putin used -- >> defied him. >> in essence, he used snowden, for whatever reason he thought, but to use snowden to defy and that's a good word, to defy the president. so i think that we have to really respond in kind. you know, when we decide what's important to us, again, putin's sensitivities were factored in. we need do what is good for us and not worry about what putin thinks. >> you about is all of this optics? we know that kerry as well as hagel will be meeting with their russian counterparts. >> yes. you go a certain length. you don't cut off your face despite your nose. there has to be some cooperation but i think that any illusion that we had that somehow or

other that putin wouldn't show his old kgb self, that's eliminated. >> what about the talk that i should say we were talking about, the talk of the united states boycotting russia because of all of this to make a statement? >> i wouldn't be in favor of that. boycotting the olympics, that was done back in 1980, we boycotted russia and russia boycotted us in 1984 when we had the olympics. i think it's tit for tat. it's supposed to be politics removed. i know it's not true. there are plenty of things that we could do to show our displeasure with russia and putin, in particular, other than boycott the olympics. the president is right about that. >> there's something to say, winning medals. i mean, that kind of makes a powerful statement right there. it's kind of the best revenge, right? sweet revenge? >> i think so. and i think there are ways at the olympics and other places we can protest russia's human

rights records. there are things we can do and we should do those things but i think boycotting the olympics is not the right way to go but we need to do things to show putin that we are dissatisfied. there's moves that he's made in eastern europe with georgia, with other countries. we now need to do what is in our best interests and not worry about putin. >> eliot engel, thank you. a football player whose career got waylaid when he was wrongly convicted of rape. nline. that's why hp built a new kind of server. one that's 80% smaller. uses 89% less energy. and costs 77% less. it's called hp moonshot. and it's giving the internet the room it needs to grow. this&is gonna be big. hp moonshot. it's time to build a better enterprise. together.

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hospital up here. she was helicoptered to an area hospital after the rescue yesterday to be evaluated and she was met by victim specialists. we understand that her father is heading there today from california and so i think what is next for her is that she's going to be reunited with her family. >> well, it should be good news for her. we've seen some of the reactions coming in from her family. they were speaking with nbc earlier today, the grandparents. it's got to be an unimaginable time for her. yes she is safe but her mother and brother were killed. >> i don't think anyone can really understand just quite what the family has gone through in the past week. i know hannah's father texted cnn last night. he put it best. it's now healing time for them. obviously they are very relieved. they said that they are relieved that she is safe. you're right, there is this

grief that they are processing because they did lose christina anderson, hannah's mother and her 8-year-old brother, ethan anderson. >> have we learned anything more about the witness who tipped off their whereabouts? >> we know that he was a horseback rider up here in montana. he spotted them some time wednesday morning, didn't realize the amber alert had been issued, didn't realize hannah was missing. he's expected to speak to reporters some time this afternoon. so we're hoping to glean a little more information from him. >> kate mather, thank you. why does oprah winfrey think a swiss boutique didn't want to sell her a $38,000 bag? next. if rz no! we're good! this is your first time missing a payment. and you've got the it card, so we won't hike up your apr for paying late. that's great! it is great! thank you. at discover, we treat you like you'd treat you.

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alex witt." while russia prepares for the upcoming winter olympics, joining me now is michelle kosinski. michelle? >> reporter: hi there. the incredible sports here in moscow is being somewhat over shadowed by the anger that's been spreading outside over this new law, banning the distribution of, quote, propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations to minors. ambiguous in its meaning but clear in its intent. now we're seeing reaction from top leaders in government, arts, and sports around the world. in fact, protests have been held in england, scott land, belgian, and the u.s. for owners of gay bars dumped after passing in parliament and allows for fines, arrests, even possible

deportation of foreign visitors, if anything deemed gay propaganda is shown in front of children, including the internet. already there have been arrests and protests and the arrest of four dutch filmmakers in the community. some are calling for a boycott of the upcoming winter olympic games in sochi, russia. on friday president obama said even though he finds this law offensive, it violates basic morality, that a boycott would only hurt athletes and that we are seeing some top athletes, including greg, former american olympic diver agreeing, saying that he was deprived his chance in the 1980 olympics when the u.s. boycotted over the soviet invasion of afghanistan and would have loved to have had that opportunity. he was world champion at the time. the head of the olympic committee said russia has assured organizers that this law will not affect athletes but

they are not satisfied. they are asking russia for more clarification. back to you. >> thank you, michelle kosinski, in moscow into let's go to oprah winfrey who is making headlines on two fronts. first, an official sent her an apology after she complained she was the victim of discrimination at a high-end store in zurich. she wanted to check out a 38,000 bag in the store when the assistant decided it was way too expensive for the host turned media mogul. and the other headline, lee daniels, "the butler." the film is based on the amazing life of eugene white who served as butler for eight presidents. chris witherspoon is joining me. i know that i interviewed oprah winfrey. before we do, your reaction to the story coming from zurich.

>> it's shocking but oprah is doing what is magical for this film. they've experienced a lot of people color have experienced with racial profiling, some type of discrimination in stores, she's just showing i'm just as human as black people living in this country and traveling. oprah is royalty to us. we think that people should recognize that she's a queen and how dare you tell her she can't afford a $38,000 handbag. >> totally classy. she doesn't name the boutique because she doesn't want to talk ill but is also like, she's not giving in to publicity. it's great, great, great. >> yeah. >> let's talk about the film, which i'm dying to see. what did she tell you about this? >> she plays a woman named

gloria gaines who is married to the butler for the white house. this is really her comeback role and it's getting a lot of oscar buzz already. >> i remember from "the color purple." she's a really good actress. >> she's an amazing actress. she was awarded for "the color purple" and her own network has turned profitable for the first time. she's kind of in an upswing of, you can't stop oprah. >> don't even try. you will go down in flames if you give it a shot. she also spoke about trayvon martin. weigh in on what she said. >> basically, she compared him to emit teal. she's very open in these interviews. she told us, we've come so far, we cannot forget where we've

come from. >> we have a highlight. here it is. >> it's so easy during this time, trayvon martin parallel to emma till. in my mind, same thing. but you can get stuck in that and not allow yourself to move forward and see how far we have come. >> typical of oprah, she sees something but she's saying you have to look at it from a different perspective as well. >> definitely. in this film we see so many presidential administrations, nixon, reagan, and we see the first black president elected in this country, barack obama. that's what she's saying, we've come so far. we have a black man sitting in the office and the first thing we see young black men being lynched. so the movie takes you through this journey to the other side. and so although we have things like trayvon martin that some people call it injustice in our society right now, we have to also look at the good things that are happening and how far we've come. >> absolutely the power to

positive thinking. >> i agree. >> chris witherspoon, you can be the king today. >> thank you. the big three is playing a game of one to ten ahead. in the world. it's delicious. so now we've turned her toffee into a business. my goal was to take an idea and make it happen. i'm janet long and i formed my toffee company through legalzoom. i never really thought i would make money doing what i love. [ robert ] we created legalzoom to help people start their business and launch their dreams. go to legalzoom.com today and make your business dream a reality. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side.

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from capital one and earn unlimited rewards. choose 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase every day. told you i'd get half. what's in your wallet? it is a dream after a living nightmare. brian banks was a player with the nfl falcons. michelle? >> reporter: that's right, alex. brian banks was a promising star on the gridiron until false criminal charges sidelined him. now a decade later, he is trying to reclaim his career. before the first down of the first preseason game was played, when brian banks burst out of the tunnel, the longest yard was already behind him. >> i played an nfl game today. >> that's something banks couldn't have dreamed of 11

years ago. at the age of 16 he had a promised scholarship and an nfl career was ahead of him. all of that was suddenly snatched from him when he was falsely convicted of rape. he served five years in prison and another four on probation before his accuser recanted, she had made the whole thing up. >> i know what i've been through. >> a year ago, with his name cleared, banks began mounting a comeback. thursday night, after standing on the sidelines for three quarters, he got his shot with the atlanta falcons. a 28-year-old rookie but no rookie nerves. >> nervous is when you walk into a courtroom and you don't know what your fate is going to be. nervous is when you walk on to a prison yard for the first time at age 18. >> he's credited with making a tackle in the game and while he may not make the team's final roster, brian banks may have already achieved his greatest victory. >> i feel in just that one game,

if it all ended yesterday, that that dream was fulfilled. >> brian is facing long odds of making the team. he's currently on the third string but the player says he's grateful, alex, for the chance to prove himself on the field. >> okay. can i tell you, i would be a fan of atlanta if he makes that team. that would be pretty awesome. thank you very much for that story. it's been called the do-nothing congress but can we expect that to change after the recess? the big three is next. with centurylink as your trusted it partner, you'll experience reliable uptime for the network and services you depend on. multi-layered security solutions keep your information safe, and secure. and responsive dedicated support meets your needs, and eases your mind. centurylink. your link to what's next. [ male announcer ] that's why there's ocuvite

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it is time for the big three in today's topics, much to do about nothing, one to ten and this week's must-read. joining me now, republican strategist and former white house aide to president george h.w. bush, joe watkins, jason johnson, and editor of citizens politics and contributor for "the daily beast," patricia murphy. hello to all three of you. >> hello. >> i'm going to reach out to you

first, joe, since you're all by yourself. let's talk about republican ted cruz of texas. even after the 40 previous attempts have failed, rather, to appeal that law. let's take a listen to listen t said. >> there is no more important regulatory reform that we can do than repeal every single word of obamacare. and that reaction right there shows how we win this fight. >> joe, you're a republican. are you at all tired of your party's focus on repealing obamacare instead of working to pass a budget or immigration reform for the american people? they tried to do this 40 times and failed. >> of course, this is an issue that touches on fiscal matters. and spending, of course, and how do we spend our money more wisely, and how do we provide americans for the health care they deserve without enforcing

upon them a type that they might not want. >> joe, with all due respect, i'm terribly fond of you, but i'm going to butt right in and say, are you tired of hearing all this? i mean, all this rhetoric? do you want something more productive to be done? are there other places to focus that could be good for the american people? >> alex, i agree with you that it would be a wonderful thing if there was a wonderful and civil and productive dialogue between democrats and republicans. it's sad that there is not. but if there was, it would be wonderful. if the president who is really a masterful communicator could be helpful in this, he's got members of congress, especially on the republican side, dead set of moving anything forward in the next session. if he can at least reach out to a cadre of republicans, to talk with him, he can probably get some things done for the american people along with this congress. right now where we stand, not in a very good place. we're probably not going to see

a the lo of positive movement on issues, like the deficit, like jobs, and certainly in the area of obamacare, we're going to continue to have a lot of fighting. >> i like how you answer the question. it makes me really happy. anyway, gop controls the house and continues to focus on things like repealing obamacare maybe for the 41st time coming up, what position does it put the democrats in? >> the democrats are in a great position when they run in 2014 and saying congress is getting nothing done. congress' approval rating has never been high, but it's been less than 20% for almost two years. revolutions have been started with more popular congresses than that. if they don't get something done soon, i think this is going to be a pox on both houses. some people think they're actually getting a little bit of work done. >> patricia, let's listen to an

exchange over obamacare. >> do you think harry heed is going to pass anything? >> we stand for conservative ideas. >> even if some republicans want to move beyond trying to defund obamacare, what kind of position are there in when they have constituents like that? are their hands essentially tied? >> the house republicans are going to have to decide, am i willing to go down over funding obama care, or am i going to just watch my right flank and forge ahead and vote to defund obamacare whenever i have the chance. congressman pittinger that you just saw there is somebody who co-sponsored the repeal of obamacare and that is not conservative enough for his

constituency. so these guys have got to decide, am i going to go with the direction of the white house, and democrats, maybe the majority of the country, or am i going to go with my district? that's a really tough call. so far, there are not a lot of house republicans willing to give up their job to support the president. i just don't see how it happens. >> okay. let's move on to 1 to 10. joe, on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 the most likely, how likely is it congress will get anything done after summer recess? >> probably about a 2. not very likely, sadly. i don't have great confidence that the congress will get lots done. i wish it would be so. again, i think a lot of the burden -- we know where people stand. people said publicly where they stand on these issues. folks are looking forward to being obstructionists to not moving certain legislation forward to defund other legislation. that doesn't help the american public. the way we move forward is if we have republicans and democrats working together for the good of the american people, to get people back to work.

so i hope the president will take it to heart, to really work hard, and those republicans in the house that can work with him. to get something done. >> okay. in order to do that, again, 1 to 10, jason, with you, getting something done in congress? >> i would say it's 4. they're going to get something done. right now, they're about as efficient as a high school student council in getting a lunch change. but a rot of republicans will realize that they have to do something at least about immigration. i would say 4. they'll get something done. >> patricia, are you going to say 3, split the difference? >> i hate to be wildly optimistic, but i'll give it a 1. i say that, because -- i'm not even kidding. if you look at the levers of power among republicans right now, mitch mcconnell is up for reelection and has a very strong tea party challenger. john boehner, there's nobody in charge. the voice is breaking through. ted cruz, rand paul, those are

the guys getting the headlines, the guys basically running the show right now. the this congress has not been able to do the hard things. they can't do the easy things. transportation funding has collapsed. no appreciation, i don't see it happening. >> endless issues here. real quickly, guys, we'll go with your must-reads. jason, you're first. >> boomerang generation. 36% of millennials are sleeping on their parents' couches right now because they can't find work in the current economy. it affects not only how we get out of the slump but the ability to pay off retirement loans and parents the ability to retire. >> patricia? >> the des moines register's front page today, full coverage of the iowa state fair. great insight into who the republicans were there. the message republicans will hear. and coverage on how to wash and blow-dry a live chicken. >> super.

joe? that's going to go down in history, i swear. joe? >> best article to read in the "washington post." >> thank you so much. i appreciate that. because that is a wrap right now for the weekend edition of "weekends with alex witt." i'm alex witt. have yourselves a great day. [ mixer whirring ] bounty select-a-size. it's the smaller powerful sheet, that acts like a big sheet. look! one select-a-size sheet of bounty is 50% more absorbent than a full size sheet of the leading ordinary brand. [ humming ] [ dad ] use less with the small but powerful picker upper. bounty select-a-size. and try bounty napkins. [ all ] who's new in the fridge! i help support bones... [ ding! ] ...the immune system... [ ding! ] ...heart health... [ ding! ] ...and muscles. [ ding! ] that can only be ensure complete! [ female announcer ] the four-in-one nutrition of ensure complete. a simple choice to help you eat right. [ major nutrition ] nutrition in charge.

these are sandra's "homemade" yummy, scrumptious bars. hmm? i just wanted you to eat more fiber. chewy, oatie, gooeyness... and fraudulence. i'm in deep, babe. you certainly are. [ male announcer ] fiber one. our key issues and people this week. spying showdown. president obama orders changes to u.s. surveillance programs and faces tough questions about the nsa leaker. >> i don't think mr. snowden was a patriot. >> the debate over the future of u.s. spying programs. mike mccaul, the head of the house homeland security committee. analysis from ted koppel of nbc news and "the washington post's" barton gellman. then presidential orders. strong words from the commander in chief this week about stamping out sexual assault in the military. the pentagon is preparing new rules, but there is an agreement on how to end the crisis. i go one-on-one with one of the lawmakers pushing for change, missouri senatorir